


Traitor

by imaginaryfriendashkun



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Age Difference, Angst, Denial of Feelings, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Painful Feelings, S2E6 - a different take, Season 2 spoilers, au-ish, barrison
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-13
Updated: 2016-03-06
Packaged: 2018-05-20 05:13:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,602
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5992786
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imaginaryfriendashkun/pseuds/imaginaryfriendashkun
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What if Harry betrays Barry and gives him to Zoom to save Jesse? </p><p>Harry tries to do the right thing but fails, he ends up having to make the hardest decision of his life when Zoom asks him to exchange Barry for Jesse. Zoom hurts Barry and returns a broken Barry to Harry but doesn't return Jesse as promised. </p><p>Barry is surprisingly understanding and cannot even bring himself to be angry at Harry like others for what has happened, he just wishes that Harry had actually asked him instead of tricking him - he can differentiate between Eobard, Harrison and Harry. He tries his best to not show that he actually likes Harry more (even after this) than he is letting on but miserably fails.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Choices

**Author's Note:**

> My second Flash fic, trying to fix the OOC-ness (is that a word?), I don't know if I have or not. Hopefully it will change, do let me know :)
> 
> If there are any glaring mistakes (grammar, tense, spelling, regarding the series etc), highlight them in the comments so that I can change them and improve. I have changed certain elements since this is kind of an AU. This is as usual 'unbetaed'.

Harry shakes his head as he replays the scene in which Zoom attacks Barry with Barry's own lightning bolt, hits him repeatedly, breaks his spine, drags him throughout Central City to show that their hero is nothing but a weak and slow man, comes back to S.T.A.R labs and stabs Barry with his speed force. 

 

Harry doesn't know if it's really his fault or not. He really believed in Barry, he thought that if it was Barry, he would be able to defeat Zoom. Barry is far better than his world's own Flash, Jay Garrick and that's why Harry had asked Barry to go against Zoom without any hesitation or preparation. He thought that Barry would be the one to end Zoom and help him get his Jesse back. 

 

Apparently he had been wrong and everything had backfired. Even Harry can be wrong sometimes, it seems.

 

Usually, he is not one to think about other people's feelings or consequences of his own actions expect with people who are very close (only a handful) to him and even in that, only Jesse is someone who affects his heart and thereby his actions completely without any restraints.

 

This was the reason why he hadn't accepted the fact that he was the cause for the presence of meta humans on his own Earth. That it was his mistake that had created the meta humans of his Earth. 

 

Instead, he had developed a way to find out the presence of meta humans and had tried to make a product out of it so that he could sell it to others and boost S.T.A.R labs reputation. Of course, it had helped the people on his Earth but in the end it all came to one thing - his craving and love for science, constant learning and development.

 

The reason he doesn't care much for people is because he cares about science, engineering and technology much more. He wants a better future, he wants a beautiful Earth of his design and he is always disappointed in people because either, most don't show the same interest or they plainly just don't understand the beauty and mysteries of science. 

 

More over, people tend to be usually misinformed, sometimes they are even oblivious idiots. They tend to believe in useless, baseless rumors and gossips instead of doing something useful, are weak and tend to whine or pity themselves, confine themselves to known circles without venturing on adventures or are filled with negative feelings which are practically of no use for a better future. They are weak not only physically but also - mentally, emotionally, psychologically... well, most of them are. 

 

Of course, there are the rare gems out there who are unique and different and good kind of eccentric but it's difficult to find them and Harry isn't someone who sits around waiting for long. He is a 'do it' and 'walk the talk' kind of person, he doesn't want to be just a 'dreamer'.

 

It has been nearly 2 months since he came here and he now realizes that he actually likes Barry, Cisco and Caitlin even though he keeps telling Cisco that he doesn't like working with him and acts as if he doesn't care about Barry and pretends as if he stayed only because Caitlin asked him to and also because, he saw the usefulness the three of them would bring to him, that's in saving Jesse from Zoom.

 

Initially he thought he could work alone, he thought that these three would only be a hindrance, literally nothing but an obstacle but as he grew closer to them, he learnt more about them, he came to know that they are very intelligent people and probably, the phrase 'more heads would do good' actually just might work with these three. 

 

He's a good judge of character, it has been only three months with these people but he knows how they feel about S.T.A.R labs and their work.

 

And somehow he ended up caring for them without even knowing how. He is from a different world, eventually he has to go back, he cannot form relationships here. Moreover he doesn't genuinely care about relationships, that's why he is mostly seen as stoic, strict, rude, arrogant and even heartless sometimes by others, he doesn't care about what people think, this is what helps him survive and be at the top of his field.

 

Sentiment, caring, relationships can be messy sometimes, that's why he is close only with a selected people and to the rest - he is just an eccentric, stuck up yet intelligent bastard.

 

But he cannot deny that there is a very very tiny part (mind you, extremely insignificantly tiny part which he would deny vehemently if asked directly) of him which wishes that there were people like these three on his own Earth so that he could work with them. He may like working alone most of the time but that's only because he has never found brilliant, passionate, persevering minds to work with like Cisco, Caitlin and strangely, even Barry.

 

Yes, somehow, with this Earth's Barry, he finds himself falling just a little bit in love. Barry's rare smiles, his constant optimism, his cheerful face and attitude and bubbly innocent character, the way he never gives up, the way he always stands for what he believes in and loves, the way he protects the people around him - strangely, that includes Harry himself too - and sometimes the way Barry is shy around him, uncertain on how to act, awkward yet adorable.

 

As soon as Barry looked at him the first time, Harry realized the emotions in Barry's eyes - extreme hurt and betrayal and disbelief, surprisingly, not rage. As soon as he came to S.T.A.R labs and learnt about the impostor Wells/Eobard - whoever the hell he was - Harry immediately knew that Barry had been in love.

 

This fact doesn't help things either. Barry had been the only one to trust Harry and had even treated him normally while the others had taken some more time and hell, sometimes they were still cautious. Since Barry had come around, the others decided to work with Harry and decided to be not outright rude, but they didn't trust him at all unlike Barry.

 

He can't blame them either as he wears the face of the impostor taken over by Eobard Thawne but that's exactly the reason he can blame them too. In the end it wasn't Earth 1 Harrison Wells who had ruined these people's lives, it had been Eobard but damn Eobard had impersonated Harrison and that's causing this Harry a lot of troubles.

 

He cannot bring himself to let go of the fact that he could possibly at fault for the condition Barry's in and that's exactly why he cannot go see Barry now. Barry's unconscious, yes, but he cannot go to the infirmary. He cannot look at Cisco, Joe, Caitlin, Iris and Jay in the eyes, he cannot accept their looks because that would distract him from his work.

 

He cares about Barry, Barry would heal but he has to save Jesse, so he sighs and goes back to his work station and continues on the serum to make Barry faster. 

 

He also knows that he has to work on ways to make Zoom slow down, a way to steal Zoom's speed.

 

**********

 

Harry jerks awake when he hears sounds and realizes that he has fallen asleep on the work station. He looks at the clock, it's freaking two o'clock in the morning. 

 

He rubs his eyes, at least, he hadn't slept for a long time, it has only been three hours.

 

He puts on his glasses and walks towards the source of the noise and sees that it's coming from the direction of the infirmary. He hesitates, he doesn't know what to do but he cannot bring himself to walk away without checking on Barry.

 

He takes a deep breath and walks towards the infirmary. Barry is thrashing around in his sleep and is sweating profusely. Harry runs forward and holds him down so that he won't accidentally pull out his IV's and the monitors he is hooked up to.

 

Barry immediately bolts awake as he feels a presence, he tries to fight Harry thinking that Harry is Zoom, Harry doesn't fight back, he just waits for Barry to calm down and slowly, Barry's eyes lose their confusion and haziness. His eyes lock onto Harry's and realization dawns on him and Barry stops trying to struggle and punch Harry.

 

Harry lets go of Barry eventually after, of course, making sure that Barry won't hurt himself anymore.

 

Both don't say anything for a couple of minutes.

 

Harry decides to break the awkward painful silence. "Where are Ramon and Snow?"

 

It takes sometime for Barry to respond, ironic, given his speed but not ironic considering the trauma he has just been through. Barry blinks a couple of times and opens and closes his mouth but no sound comes out.

 

Harry lightly smiles to himself thinking about Barry cares more about others than himself even in this condition. "You asked them to leave? I can't believe they actually left, considering how protective they are over you."

 

Barry chuckles. "I can be pretty persuasive."

 

Harry rolls his eyes. "No, you are not. West senior and junior would never leave you alone in this condition. Even Snow wouldn't. They left because you have healed physically. You don't need to be monitored continuously. Still... didn't think they would actually leave."

 

Barry's eyes widens. Harry has always been observant, he has to be, it's a rather good side effect of his job.

 

"Or, you probably snapped at them. But sarcasm, pretending to throw tantrums and moping around doesn't really suit you. With the way they are over bearing and hover around you, it's interesting that you actually drove them away. I thought they would be here on shift basis or something and I would have to go through the physical pain of having them breathing on my neck constantly and monitoring me not so subtly so that I won't end up hurting you again - on purpose or not."

 

Barry mutters, "I just didn't want them to be alone and they agreed."

 

Harry rolls his eyes and murmurs, "You are fine with being alone, then?"

 

Harry knows that technically Barry is not alone, that he is right here but somehow something doesn't add up and the fact that Barry doesn't reply just makes it more obvious. Harry decides to ignore the lack of response.

Barry decides to reply to Harry's previous statement. He adds as an after thought, "No, I am not sulking!"

 

Harry quips, "The way you just said that petulantly shows that you are, indeed, sulking. Your perseverance and optimism - the only good redeeming quality about you."

 

Barry glares at Harry. "Those are actually two qualities, thank you very much."

 

Harry chuckles for a fraction of a second, if Barry hadn't been looking at Harry, he wouldn't even probably know that Harry had just smiled.

 

"Like I said, sarcasm doesn't suit you."

 

"I know what you are trying to do."

 

"Oh, do you now, Mr. Allen?"

 

"Don't call me Mr. Allen, just call me Barry or don't call me by my name at all. You are not going to rile me up like this, this is just so obvious. Again, I repeat, I know what you are trying to do."

 

"Then, why don't you enlighten me, Barry? Are you going to prove me right or are you going to give up like an idiot I am beginning to think you are?"

 

Barry knows that Harry is trying to keep his mind off of Zoom in hopes that he might get his power back. Harry is also probably trying to take his own mind off of things he would rather not think about and given the circumstances, Barry understands.

 

But it seems like Harry is going back to his usual closed off, snarky self. When Barry takes a step forward, Harry backs off and when Harry takes a step forward, Barry isn't comfortable. He doesn't know when this game of tag between them will end.

 

Harry changes the topic, "They are going to come back soon, aren't they? No way they would leave you alone for long. They just went back for a couple of hours to change, rest and come back. Of course."

 

Barry's silence itself was a perfect answer. He welcomes the change in topic.

 

"So, why aren't you up?"

 

Barry chokes. "I st-ill cannot f-eel my legs." The moment of calm vanishes as Barry reverts back to his pessimism, this drives them both crazy. Harry is completely losing his patience. He tried something different for a change, looks like Barry needs a direct slap on his head. And Harry is not someone who walks away from confrontations.

 

"That is just a pathetic excuse. You can if you try. You are just scared to, afraid that you will find out that you don't have your powers once you start walking. It's all in your mind, there's no way your powers are going to leave you because they have merged with you at a cellular level. I read the reports of your training. Zoom didn't suck your speed from you like he did with Jay, he just beat the crap out of you. It's fucking psychosomatic!"

 

"And here I am, like this. He just did what you thought he wouldn't be able to do with me, he completely defeated me. So, why are you still here? I am not of much use for your daughter in my current state."

 

Harry wants to hit Barry with something. Barry's tone was defeated, he wasn't even feeling angry at Harry. What the hell could he do with a person who has just lost all hope? And that is supposed to be Barry's wonderful virtue - he never gives up even if he knows that he would be hurt, he always runs towards danger instead of away from it but hearing 'defeat' in Barry's voice just made him want to break everything into pieces around him and shake some freaking sense into Barry.

 

"You need to get up, pull your shit together and start training again."

 

"I am not ready."

 

Harry yells, "Stop moping around! You are alive, be thankful for that. A lot of people aren't because of Zoom but you are alive. I am not going to sugar coat things just because you are scared."

 

Barry frowns and bites his lip. "But I am powerless." He knows that he is uncharacteristically being idiotic but he just can't bring himself to get over it that easily. He was dragged around Central City for heaven's sake! Even he has his low points sometimes unlike what people think about him.

 

Harry stalks forward and lightly slaps Barry's cheeks with both of his hands and holds Barry's face in a painful grip. 

 

He is done trying to play nice. He doesn't care if Barry thinks of him as a rude jerk and ass hole. Barry would probably think that he is merciless, here Barry is traumatized and bed ridden and Harry is thoughtlessly being insensitive. Shit always happens, people cannot just give up, they can take sometime maybe but Barry looks like he doesn't even want to try. 

 

Harry is too tired to explain to Barry that he is angry not at Barry but at himself. He is supposed to be a fucking scientist! He had blindly believed in Barry without any analysis. Of course, he had read the reports about Barry's speed. Barry had reached a little over Mach 2 during the incident with Eobard Thawne, he had gotten his hand on certain facts but he had failed himself and had failed to verify Barry's current position as a speedster. He has failed himself, Jesse and... Barry.

 

Even Barry had trusted him without any doubts. More over, in the state that Barry's in, Barry would not understand his reasons or explanations. Barry would only blame himself further.

 

"If you don't get your act together, more people are going to die and that includes my daughter, Jesse. I know that I can get her back on my own but your help would speed things up but if you are just going to wallow in self pity, I guess I am better off on my own. Now, I need you to get your ass out of the bed and try walking at least instead of lying there like a dead body. You ask yourself this - do you want to stay like a defeated, useless pile of trash forever? You can get back up or you can just accept that Zoom got you in one go. Even Jay tried more times than you."

 

As he ends the tirade, Harry cannot bring himself to look at Barry, he cannot watch his hopes crash - again. He turns away from Barry and tries to calm himself and plops down on a chair facing the other way from Barry. He turns and checks the IV's and monitors and feels glad that they are all the way they should be.

 

He glares at Barry and walks out of the room ignoring Barry's calls. If Barry wants to tell him something, he can walk and find Harry's location and then tell him. Otherwise Harry is not going to listen and he is not going to help Barry anymore.

 

He is not going back to the infirmary to see Barry lying on the bed without having even tried to move.

 

**********

 

Harry's so deep in thoughts that he fails to hear the crackling noise behind him until it's too late. He's pinned against the wall in an instant and Zoom's face is in front of his and he fights the urge to throw up.

 

How does Zoom always know when he is alone? Knowing Zoom, he probably has surveillance over the whereabouts of everyone on this Earth. This thought just gets a shudder out of Harry involuntarily.

 

Zoom tightens his grip around Harry's throat until Harry cannot breathe properly. Zoom doesn't let go and Harry tries to claw at Zoom's hands but they don't budge until Zoom lets him go after a couple of minutes.

 

Harry slides down the wall and massages his throat and gets in huge gulps of air without restraints, he leans against the wall and looks up at Zoom with a sick feeling in his stomach.

 

"I want you to choose - Barry Allen or Jesse Quick. If you choose Barry, forget your daughter. If you choose Jesse, bring the Flash to any one of the breaches. If you don't choose, be prepared to lose them both."

 

And in a lightning flash, Zoom is gone making Harry regret his work for the first time in his 52 years.

 

He knows that this is a disgusting power play. Barry's weak right now, Zoom could easily waltz into S.T.A.R labs and finish off Barry or even take Barry himself but instead Zoom is making Harry choose. He wants Harry to betray either Barry or Jesse.

 

Zoom probably knows that Harry will find it difficult to choose between Barry and Jesse. Zoom is not just a speedster who wants to physically subdue his victims, he is very much a sadist who wants full control of his victims' lives - psychologically, emotionally, mentally, physically - he wants to own them, make them suffer in every way possible and then he will kill them making them believe that he is actually freeing them from the pain while he was the one who created their hell in the first place - such a vile beastly creature, a pure masochistic, narcissistic bastard.

 

Unfortunately Harry put himself on that list when he created meta humans without meaning to, he attracted Zoom's unwanted attention. And as a result, Zoom has to know everything about Harry's life and it figures that Zoom would know about his growing feelings for Barry before he himself could acknowledge them.

 

And Harry knows that he is going to play into Zoom's hands as a puppet. He doesn't have a choice (he probably has but he chooses to ignore it, he cannot go on like this without his light, without his Jesse anymore, it's his fault Jesse's even in this mess, he cannot fail her again and again even if it means giving up on Barry and sacrificing him). What he needs to do and wants to do are two different things. He knows exactly what he is going to do, exactly what he has to do and he will do it.


	2. Repercussions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not sure if this story is going the way I want it to. This is 'unbetaed', if there are problems with grammar or spelling or anything, comment, let me know... so I can change and improve. Ideas and suggestions are welcome.
> 
> Note : In this chapter, I am assuming that Barry's metabolism won't end up burning the drug swiftly because he temporarily doesn't have his speed force. He is healing yes but other internal activities are slowed down, even his healing is slower than usual.

Harry paces back and forth in the room near the infirmary. He had just checked on Barry a few minutes before for the umpteenth time after Zoom had cornered him and given an ultimatum a couple of hours before. Barry is sound asleep.

 

He knows that if he doesn't do this soon, he can't do it at all since the others will be back in a couple of hours. It's already four in the morning and they would be here by six and after that there's no way they would leave Barry alone.

 

He takes the drug which would render Barry unconscious for at least an hour and pockets it. He starts walking around again and again. Harry is annoying himself with his own hesitation.

 

The part of him which has grown fond of Barry doesn't want him to do it but the rational part which lives for his daughter, Jesse, is screaming at him. The two parts inside him are raging against each other and finally the one that loves his Jesse wins.

 

He walks to the infirmary before he can talk himself out of this. He stops and stares at Barry's sleeping form. He looks so young and innocent like this, like he doesn't have any worry in the world. But the sharp contrasting truth is all together a different matter.

 

He knows that Joe is going to be so angry that he would probably kill Harry, that is if he finds Harry after this. Harry would probably be too busy trying to hide in a hole after this trying to find the will to forgive himself.

 

Contrary to what most people think, he does care about a few people, he just pretends he doesn't because he doesn't like emotions and complications in his life. And it seems like he cares about this Barry a lot.

 

Joe and Iris would be devastated. After all, he should know, he is currently going through the same thing, he is away from Jesse after all. Can he bring himself to put someone through the same position? After all he doesn't know if Zoom would keep Barry alive if he gets his hand on Barry but there's a part of him that knows that Zoom probably would.

 

Zoom needs Barry's powers and just for that sake, Zoom would keep Barry alive till he gets what he needs from him. But him not hurting Barry is all together a different story. There's definitely a chance that Zoom would hurt Barry.

 

Barry doesn't have his powers right now but this is only a mental problem that can be over come. Barry hasn't lost his powers forever. But, would Zoom have enough patience to wait till Barry gets his powers back? There's a chance he would because Zoom would want to feel the sick pleasure of seeing the powers leave Barry in front of his own eyes and would never let go of an opportunity to crush Barry mentally and emotionally.

 

On the other hand, if Barry is not going to get his powers back anytime soon, Zoom would soon tire of Barry - Barry would be of zero use to him and what will happen to Barry is a mystery.

 

The thought that there's also a probability that Zoom would probably kill him, Jesse and Barry as soon as Harry hands Barry to Zoom had crossed his mind. 

 

Another scenario is something in which Zoom would probably take Harry himself too to extract Barry's soon to return powers. But there's also a chance that Zoom would give him his Jesse back and he is willing to take all these calculated risks. He would give up his life for Jesse's sake without any hesitation.

 

Harry shakes his head again, just a few minutes ago he talked himself into not thinking about Barry or the others of this Earth whom he has grown close to. He injects the drug into Barry's IV and settles on the couch. He takes a few deep breaths.

 

The drug would only take ten or so minutes to start working.

 

After fifteen minutes, he walks towards Barry, gulps and shakes Barry. Barry doesn't wake up. He slightly slaps Barry and shakes him harder. Barry still doesn't wake up. 

 

Harry carefully unhooks the IV's and the monitors that are attached to Barry and gently lifts Barry in his arms. Barry's far too thin and light for his liking. He doesn't let his mind dwell on the fact that Barry feels so warm and vulnerable and peaceful in his arms.

 

He walks outside and places him in the front seat of the S.T.A.R labs van.

 

He makes sure that Barry is comfortably settled even though it doesn't matter with what is going to happen to him soon.

 

He walks around the van and gets in and starts the van slowly. He had gotten the key from Cisco's workstation before. He drives. He knows it would just be easy to take Barry to the S.T.A.R labs breach, Zoom would be in and out in a second, flat. 

 

But he cannot somehow bring himself to do such a wretched deed in S.T.A.R labs. Even though this is not his Earth, this lab is exactly like his own and he cannot do this in his own lab. He knows this is morally wrong. S.T.A.R labs is a place which he loves. He dedicated the whole of his life to build and establish the lab. 

 

Also he cannot bring himself to face Garrick, Snow, Ramon, West senior and junior immediately at the labs after what he is going to do. He needs to be far away from them for sometime, at least. He will get his Jesse back, go to them and tell them everything. He will accept anything they will do to him as long as he has his Jesse.

 

He knows he should not be doing this at all in the first pace but he wants to see his Jesse once more. He cannot be separated from her anymore, he has reached his limits. It has already been three months and he cannot let Jesse be with Zoom in a scary place all by herself any longer.

 

Moreover he needs this drive, he needs the time to mentally prepare himself to see the scene in which Zoom would take Barry away from him forcefully. He will not have enough time if this were to happen at S.T.A.R labs.

 

He thinks as he drives. He will definitely save Barry after he gets his Jesse back. He will start by closing all breaches to his Earth except the one at S.T.A.R labs and then go for Barry. He will get Barry back.

 

**********

 

He realizes that he has been driving for nearly forty minutes after he looks at his watch. He curses and closes his eyes for a second and hears a horn. In front of him, he sees a truck's glaring head lights and swerves the van to get back on his lane. He had somehow gotten onto the wrong lane. How had he gotten so distracted? What is Barry doing to his mind and heart?

 

He hasn't even given up on Barry yet and the guilt is already eating at him.

 

He knows he is very sleepy, he hasn't slept more than four hours every day since he had gotten here. He shakes his head and sees that there's a weight on his shoulder. During the swerve, somehow Barry's head had landed on his shoulder. He doesn't do anything.

 

Harry finally stops near a breach before he can talk himself out of doing this - again, again and again. He had literally been driving in circles before, he doesn't want to anymore.

 

He gently extricates his shoulder from under Barry's head. Barry is not going to wake up anyway.

 

He knows that Zoom would be waiting for him and probably even be monitoring his actions. He stops in front of the breach and says, "I have brought the Flash, give me my Jesse back."

 

He sighs after half an hour, he still hasn't heard from Zoom.

 

He kicks a stone harshly on his path and walks back to the van and slides in. He knows with a sick gut feeling that Barry would probably wake up soon and he immediately knows that Zoom is waiting for Barry to wake up.

 

Harry growls at himself. He cannot do this anymore. He has to take the risk that Zoom wouldn't kill either Barry or his Jesse. He starts the van, he is going to drive back to S.T.A.R labs.

 

And at the same moment, two things happen. Blue electricity cracks in front of him as Zoom appears in front of his van and Barry opens his eyes lightly and blinks and closes them sleepily.

 

Harry knows he cannot out run Zoom, he looks like a deer caught in front of head lights.

 

Zoom hisses, "Going somewhere, Wells?"

 

Barry opens his eyes partially and looks at Zoom. The drug is not out of his system completely yet. Barry feels so heavy, he cannot move or speak but he knows that something is happening.

 

He is not lying on a bed, he sees Zoom in front of him, he is in something that looks like a vehicle and next to him is Harry. Is he hallucinating because of guilt? Or is he going mad finally?

 

Suddenly the vehicle jerks to a stop as Zoom is next to Harry in a jiffy. Barry watches wearily as Harry is pulled out of the driver seat by Zoom and is thrown onto the ground.

 

He still cannot move, everything feels so groggy, it's as if he is drugged. He feels so sleepy. He feels his mind slipping away again. Some alarm bells ring in his head as he knows that someone is in trouble and that he probably has to help but all he wants is to sleep and never wake up.

 

He hears voices but they feel so far away.

 

Harry bites his lips from screaming in pain as he is thrown bodily onto the ground. Zoom picks him up again and throws him against the van.

 

"You cannot escape from me, do you hear me?"

 

Zoom picks him up and slams his back onto the van and screams in his ear. "I asked you a question, why are you not answering?"

 

Harry nods weakly.

 

Thankfully Zoom doesn't ask him to say anything out loud. Harry's pride wouldn't have allowed him and that would probably have put him, Jesse and Barry in more trouble.

 

Zoom opens the door of the van and drags Barry's lifeless body out.

 

"So, you chose Jesse, you chose wrong, Wells. You are not getting either of them. You cannot save anyone as long as you are my target."

 

Harry's eyes widen in fear for the first time. This wasn't something he had anticipated.

 

"No, no! Give me my Jesse back, you promised that you would return her in place of Barry!"

 

Zoom crackles, "You are an idiot. You think you can actually make deals with me? I just want to watch you suffer, know your place. I will have my revenge."

 

And Zoom is gone along with Barry but Harry knows that Barry heard those last two sentences before falling unconscious again.

 

Harry punches the ground repeatedly till his hand starts to bleed. He doesn't stop till he is completely exhausted and slumps against the side of the van and closes his eyes.

 

**********

 

Barry opens his eyes and feels glad that he doesn't feel weighed down anymore. He moves his arms and legs and stretches them. He looks around and sees that he is in a glass cage. Next to him are two more cages, there's a girl in one and a masked guy in the other.

 

The girl is probably Jesse and this is Zoom's hideout on Earth-2. So that hadn't been an hallucination after all. Harry had actually sold him to Zoom for Jesse. He is surprised that he actually remembers what had happened somehow. He had been drugged and asleep for most of what had happened, after all. But he isn't surprised either because after all this involves Harry.

 

Somehow Barry doesn't feel angry at all. He is upset that Harry doesn't love him like he loves Harry but he is not angry at all. Strangely, he even understands. After all if Joe had done this to protect Iris, he wouldn't have been angry.

 

He just wishes that Harry had actually asked him instead of drugging him. That hurts him, this is a betrayal. He is just disappointed in Harry.

 

The girl looks at him and says, "Who are you?"

 

Barry leans his head against the glass door and replies, "I am Barry Allen from a parallel Earth. I am another speedster like Zoom. I know your father, Dr. Wells."

 

Jesse's eyes widen. "What does Zoom want with you? Is my father with you?"

 

"Zoom probably wants my speed or wants me dead. He wants to be the fastest person in the whole world, in all the universes. Yes, your father is working to save you, he never stopped or gave up hope. He worries about you everyday."

 

Jesse snorts. "He cares only about himself. My dad doesn't care about anyone else. He sacrificed you to Zoom for some reason, after all."

 

Barry sighs, "Don't believe what Zoom tells you. Harry didn't sacrifice me. I came on my own accord. Harry would never do this because he knows he cannot live with this on his conscious. He knows that you wouldn't approve. He would never sacrifice someone else to save you because you would never forgive him."

 

He knows that he is lying through his teeth but he doesn't want Jesse to give up hope on her father. He loves his own father and believed in him, that he didn't kill his mother when no one else did.

 

Harry loves Jesse the same way and doesn't want her to get hurt at any cost and has difficulty accepting the fact that he is the reason that Jesse was captured by Zoom in the first place. Barry had seen Harry work day and night without rest.

 

He doesn't want Jesse to lose a valuable father. Harry may not love him but Harry loves Jesse with the whole of his being.

 

"You are the light of his life, Jesse. He would do anything to save you. Don't hate him, don't believe in Zoom. This is what Zoom wants, for you to give up on Harry. Fight back mentally even if you can't physically."

 

Jesse nods and smiles for the first time. Barry smiles back but inside, he is dying. The fact that he means nothing to Harry at all is killing him. He hadn't expected Harry to so easily sacrifice him to Zoom.

 

Of course, he knows that Harry doesn't like him but he never thought that Harry didn't even care at all for him.

 

Barry turns away a little to hide his watery eyes. He cannot cry, he cannot cry for Harry.

 

Jesse whispers, "Are you all right?"

 

Barry just nods, he cannot bring himself to speak.

 

"Why would you sacrifice yourself for me?"

 

Barry just laughs. He would sacrifice himself for Jesse because he loves Harry. He is not confused anymore, initially he was confused because Harry looked exactly like the object of his affections - the Dr. Wells (impostor Thawne) of his own Earth.

 

He even had had a relationship with Harrison. He had been an idiot. Eobard had thrown that on his face before trying to kill him, before being vanished from existence forever.

 

He doesn't like Harry just because he looks like Harrison. He likes Harry for who he is. Even though Harry pretends not to care, he actually does care for Snow and Ramon.

 

He likes Harry's straight forward personality, his unflinching perseverance, Harry's intelligence, the way Harry doesn't care about what others think, the way Harry never stopped working on bringing down Zoom even though Zoom's abilities outweighed Harry's physically - that too, a lot, the way Harry never gave up on Jesse, the way Harry pretends to keep people at arm's length.

 

Initially Barry had hated Harry because he looked exactly like his nightmare, the impostor he had fallen for. Barry had always liked Dr. Wells from an young age. 

 

Moreover, he hadn't been able to deny the attraction he felt towards Harry because of Harry's face but slowly he had started falling for Harry's personality. Of course, it has only been four to five months but Barry's a person who sees good in all people, even in the bad ones and Harry definitely is not a bad person, just a misunderstood person who doesn't like opening up to people, a man who loves science and his daughter, a man who had made some bad mistakes without meaning to.

 

Barry lightly hit his head on the glass cage. He had thought that Harry had actually started to like him and care of him. Barry can be a bad judge of character sometimes.

 

He realizes that Jesse is waiting for his reply.

 

"My family - Joe and Iris, they say that I am too kind for my own good, that I always put others before myself, that I like being a hero and saving people."

 

Jesse isn't dumb. "That still doesn't answer my question. You don't even know me."

 

"I know enough about you through Harry."

 

A pause.

 

"You love my father, don't you?"

 

Barry doesn't say anything. He doesn't have to. He doesn't want to.

 

He denies it. "Not in that way. I just admire him and his work and his dedication."

 

"That's not enough, that's not it."

 

It must be female intuition.

 

Barry doesn't reply, he just closes his eyes. He still feels tired. He still hasn't gotten his powers back. He doesn't know what to do.

 

"He doesn't love you, does he? Did you really come here on your own accord?"

 

Barry shakes his head in frustration. "It doesn't really matter now, does it? Whether he loves me or not? All that matters is that he didn't do this to me."

 

"Stop lying to me. He doesn't care about most people."

 

"He cares about you, that's enough. You don't need to worry about anything else."

 

Before Jesse could reply, Zoom appears and bangs Barry's glass door with a force that hurt Barry's head.

 

"Don't talk to her. You don't want me to hurt her, do you?"

 

Barry gulps and nods. He feels afraid for the first time. He remembers what Zoom did to him, he could do that again easily and this time, he doesn't have his speed force either.

 

Zoom realizes that Barry's afraid. He phases himself through the glass door and picks up Barry and starts strangling him. Barry tries to claw at Zoom's hands but it doesn't help.

 

Zoom lets go of Barry and hits Barry again and again. Barry falls down and Zoom starts kicking him in the stomach. He picks Barry up again by his hair and punches him, he steps on Barry's wrist and a sick crunch his heard. Barry's left wrist is broken.

 

Both Zoom and Barry try to ignore Jesse's pleas to not hurt Barry.

 

Zoom finally kicks Barry's left knees and punches him in the ribs once again before speeding away. Barry knows that he has at least a few bruised ribs and a broken knee cap and a wrist.

 

**********

 

Harry gets up on shaky legs. He has to go back to S.T.A.R labs and get help to save Barry. He has to tell Joe, Iris, Jay, Cisco and Caitlin about what he has done. 

 

He cannot save Barry or Jesse on his own.

 

He gets into the van and drives the fastest he has ever driven and breaks all traffic rules.

 

**********

 

Harry rushes into the lab and realizes that no one is still there. He sends an S.O.S message to Joe, Iris, Jay, Cisco and Caitlin using Cisco's computer and waits. He starts working on the algorithm to track Zoom.

 

Within 5 minutes, Cisco and Caitlin are running into the cortex breathless.

 

Caitlin looks horrified at Harry's broken appearance.

 

Cisco knows that something is immediately wrong. He rushes to the infirmary and sees that Barry is missing.

 

He looks at Harry and shrieks, "What did you do to Barry?!"

 

Harry looks down. "I gave him to Zoom."

 

At that moment, Joe, Iris and Jay walk in. It looks like Joe heard Harry. He runs towards Harry but Caitlin beats him to it and surprises everyone by slapping Harry, hard.

 

Harry doesn't fight as Joe lifts him from the chair and hits him again and again.

 

Iris and Caitlin try to pull away a struggling Joe away from Harry.

 

Iris whispers in shock, "What have you done, Dr. Wells? He trusted you, he was the only one who did and you betrayed him - so easily."

 

Harry hides his pain but it's noticed by Cait and Iris.

 

Cait whispers, "It wasn't an easy decision, was it?"

 

Joe growls, "That's not important now! How are we going to find Barry?"

 

Iris shakes her head, "I want to know the whole story. I want to know what exactly happened."

 

Harry shakes his head, "There's no time for that. We have to save Barry before it's too late."

 

Cisco comes forward and touches him. Harry doesn't say anything, he waits till Cisco comes out of his trance. He just nods at Harry and walks away. Harry knows that Cisco is having trouble deciphering whether Harry is a good or a bad guy. Harry himself doesn't know at this point.

 

Harry closes his eyes and tunes out as Cisco explains everything that happened to the others. He concentrates on his work to save Barry.

 

He knows that he has to save Barry now without fail. He can't keep losing more and more people. Even if these people don't forgive him and hate him forever, he needs their help right now to save Barry. After saving Barry, he will go away and work on his own to save his Jesse. He won't put these people in trouble anymore. He doesn't want to disappoint Jesse and Barry any further. He will save Barry and Jesse.


	3. Disappointment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hope I have Harry, Barry and Jesse in character cos I had to rewrite this a couple of times to get into their heads.  
> Unbetaed as usual.  
> Have changed some elements.  
> Please do point out glaring mistakes (tense, grammar and the like) so I can improve.  
> Highlight areas for improving and about the characterization. Thank you :)
> 
> Sorry for the delay

Barry shifts lightly in the cell. He hurts all over. His healing powers have dramatically decreased. He heals... all right, just not at the pace he used to.

 

It has already been five days and Zoom has visited him every day at least twice to beat him up and show him who the hell has upper hand in this scenario even though it's pretty much already obvious. 

 

Barry hates himself, no matter how much he tries, he cannot forget the way he was dragged around Central City like a broken rag doll. Every time he tries to recover his powers back, Zoom puts him down, literally.

 

Every time he closes his eyes, Harry's betrayal stings a little even more, his heart is poisoned even more, his thoughts are tainted till the entire incident keeps playing again and again whether he is awake or not. Zoom has his mind running an endless loop and isn't that ironical, considering he can't run like the speedster he is supposed to be.

 

Barry realizes that this is what Zoom wants. He does not want Barry to regain his powers temporarily and that's completely opposite from the initial plan because the only reason Zoom sent other people from Earth 2 to kill Barry was to extract Barry's powers for himself.

 

So why does Zoom not want Barry to regain his powers now?

 

Barry can guess only one thing - power play. Zoom wants to show Harry that he is the one who has full control over the situation and no matter what Harry (or for that matter, Barry) cannot save anyone.

 

Poor Barry and Jesse are caught in the cross fire between Zoom and Harry and moreover Harry is a reluctant participant.

 

But there's also something more to this. Zoom is trying to pull off something and he doesn't know what that is and strangely, for now, he doesn't want to know.

 

Barry himself does not want this. He hates being a puppet to Zoom's strings, he does not want to dance to Zoom's wishes but he has no choice but to. He wants to regain his powers badly and no matter how much he tries, he keeps on failing.

 

He is not allowed to talk to Jesse and the masked man either. He had tried to talk to Jesse again and Zoom had bet him to a pulp and had made Jesse cry by threatening her with all sorts of scenarios of broken Harry and Barry. That had shut her up - effectively that too.

 

Before that incident, Barry and Jesse had been talking about Harry. Jesse's anger was slowly subsiding too. Barry is still a fool, he had told nothing but good things about Harry leaving out the dark things he had done to save Jesse. Somehow, he doesn't want Jesse to give up on Harry at all, he knows what it's to lose a father not physically but to society's norms.

 

He doesn't want the same to happen to Jesse and Harry. One, because they love each other and are too stubborn to see, realize or say it to each other. Two, he wouldn't want what happened to him to happen to anyone else in anyway.

 

It's getting difficult to not talk to Jesse because he actually liked speaking with her. Of course, he had only spoken with her on the first two days but he was glad that he had been able to speak with her no matter how short it had been.

 

Barry remembers the last conversation he had with Jesse and all the conversations he had with her before that clearly. He would never forget those - ever.

 

**********

 

Barry had tried to escape through the glass by phasing through it a few times. He had gotten his powers for a few seconds before collapsing after the scene in which he was humiliated flashed before his eyes. Jesse had encouraged him too and had tried giving him a few tips but nothing had worked.

 

He gave up after a couple of hours. After that there was nothing left to do. He decided to get to know Jesse. Of course, he would try to regain his powers from time to time but there was this sudden urge to know more about the daughter of his love, of his cruel love.

 

Was she cruel like her father? Was she as smart as her father? Was she unsociable? Was she kind inwardly? Was she awkward and kept things hidden or was she straight forward and open? 

 

All of these had led him to talk to her.

 

Of course, Jesse as a scientist was a curious person and she wanted to know more about the moronic person who could actually fall in love with her father or more like the exterior facade he portrayed and both of them had started talking.

 

**********

 

Barry had told her about everything that had happened to him after he had been hit by the lightning to the time Eobard had been erased from existence. He had even told her about the crush he had on Dr. Wells from his high school years.

 

Jesse had told him everything about her father and mother and how she had grown up without a mother for the most part. She had told him all about her studies and friends too but kept on steering the conversations back to topics related to her father - his embarrassing moments (it was hard for Barry to believe that Harry did have such moments), his happy moments, angry moments, awkward moments and such.

 

Harry would probably kill them both for talking about him but hey, what else could they do to pass the time? Moreover, they genuinely wanted to know about Harry through each other's eyes.

 

Jesse was both excited and upset that someone could actually see through her father enough to actually fall in love with him. Excited because she wanted her father to be with a partner again, upset because she did not want her father to hurt the person. 

 

Barry just was curious about the real Dr. Wells, not the facade that Harry showed everyone at Earth 1 S.T.A.R labs and what better way to know about the man other than from his own daughter's view points?

 

It was interesting too because Barry and Jesse kept arguing about Harry's real personality - looked like no one had that down yet properly. Not a mystery at all considering the man who was fully shrouded in nothing but ambiguity and secrets.

 

**********

 

It is very easy to talk to Jesse. She is just like Iris, she is smart too just like Dr. Wells and it made it all the more easy and interesting to talk with her. She could keep up with him when he spoke about science unlike Iris and Joe.

 

She did not judge him either. She did not care that he loves a man, that he is in love with her father, a man who is nearly twice his age. She understands Barry well without him even speaking a lot because she is closer to his age.

 

And they are both nerds and they both went through the same things in school and college which makes it even more easier to relate to each other and understand each other's personality, decisions and character.

 

Jesse sighs, "Why do you love him, Barry? He sacrificed you for himself and me."

 

Barry shrugs and smiles painfully. "I understand... because my father would probably do the same for me, Joe would definitely do the same for Iris. There's nothing wrong in this, Jesse... because parents do what they have to, to protect their children. They would never wish anything bad to happen to their children."

 

"Still, aren't you even a little bit angry?"

 

"I am just upset. I am disappointed because I thought I actually was getting to know him better and vice versa. I thought he actually liked me... well, he could stand to be around me unlike Cisco and Cait... but I guess I thought wrong."

 

"You are hiding something."

 

Barry rolls his eyes. Jesse is very very observant. This reminds him of Harry. And she has perseverance and patience, all right... and does not give up till she has her answers.

 

"I pretend that he had trouble, I pretend that he actually hesitated before giving me as fodder to Zoom."

 

Jesse bites her lips. She smiles a little. "That's possible. He can make decisions as fast as lightning when it comes to the company but when it comes to me, he takes a long time and analyzes every option. From whatever you told me, I can see that he does actually like you but he just is a giant ball of awkwardness and he definitely wouldn't show it to you directly."

 

"Is it because I am from Earth 1 and eventually you both have to go back to Earth 2?"

 

Jesse nods. "That's definitely a big part of it. But it's mostly because he is afraid of making new relationships. He closed himself off after my mom died and that was 16 years ago. He never dated anyone after that even though I tried to set him up a lot of times."

 

Barry laughs despite the thought of Harry going on dates with people other than him.

 

"He probably would have scolded you for all those sneak attacks."

 

Jesse bobs her head in enthusiasm. "Oh, yes he did. When he gets into one of his bad moods, no one can stop him, not even me. I got quite a earful every time but I never stopped because in the end, I just want him to be happy."

 

"He probably thinks that you won't be happy if he loves someone else other than your mother?"

 

Jesse sighs and rolls her eyes. "Why would I? As long as the person he loves treats him and me in the right way and makes him happy, I am up for anything. I wouldn't care about his lover's age or gender or anything. I don't even know my mother, Barry. That's a sad thing, she is not with us but Harry is... so shouldn't he worry about himself more?"

 

Jesse is practical and that's like her father. But Jesse is outwardly kind unlike her father, she also is sociable and likes to share things unlike Harry.

 

Barry is afraid to ask the question but he asks anyway. "Can't he love anyone else?"

 

"I honestly don't have the answer for that Barry. One thing I can say is, he has never met anyone like you and within this short period of time, he has never liked or accepted or appreciated anyone like he has with you. He hasn't bothered to get close to anyone either."

 

That's somehow enough and not enough for Barry at the same time.

 

**********

 

"Can you tell me about the dates you set him on?"

 

Barry knows that he is digging himself into a pit, that it's only going to rip his heart into shreds but he just wants to know. He is a very curious person and he just wants to know more and more about Harry suddenly.

 

It's like a dam has burst open when Jesse had started talking to him and asking him about Harry, more so evident because Harry had been completely closed off and hadn't shared any personal information at all with them.

 

Heck, they only knew about Jesse's kidnapping because Cisco had accidentally 'vibed' him.

 

Jesse just stares at him, a stare not so different from Harry's when he is trying to figure something out.

 

"Do you really want to hear it? Are you sure, Barry? You don't have to do this to yourself, you know that, right?"

 

Why is Jesse so mature for her age anyway? She probably had to be because she had to take care of herself and Harry. She had told Barry that at times she had even stopped Harry from doing something unintentionally cruel.

 

Barry just shrugs his shoulders.

 

Jesse says nothing for a few seconds and Barry is afraid that she is actually going to stop talking about Harry and she is going to steer the conversation away from Harry completely but she surprises him when she suddenly starts talking. "There are a lot of funny, weird, uncomfortable ones. Once I set him up with a younger guy named Mike. Mike on purpose kept on irritating my dad by calling him the wrong name throughout the half an hour my dad decided to painfully go through with him at a restaurant. Mike just wanted to know what my dad's reactions would be."

 

"There was an other guy who was so into Star Trek that he kept on speaking in Klingon and my dad got frustrated and walked out. There was one with a woman who I did not know was actually married, her husband came and accused my dad of having seduced her. That was the worst one ever. I was nearly grounded and he never grounds me, mind you, ever!"

 

"There was one with an older woman who wanted to 'own' him and that was the last one."

 

Barry laughs despite himself and the situation.

 

"Are you purposefully trying to tell me only the bad and the funny ones? Aren't there any good ones at all?"

 

"I am not telling you the good ones until your relationship with my dad is defined by me."

 

Barry is surprised, "Why would you do that?"

 

Jesse heaves out a frustrated sigh. "Do you really want me to say it or are you really that dumb that you don't understand or you are just devious because you want me to say it out loud."

 

This reminds Barry of Harry a little - she is a bit rude here. She also gets impatient and irritated when people don't understand her or when things don't go her way like Harry but Barry can say that this is not with a lot of people but only with a few people. That's when it hits him.

 

Barry opens his eyes in wonder. "You actually like me? I mean... for your dad?"

 

Jesse's laugh is mischievous here. "I am not saying anything else. You are not going to get anymore from me, I think I have already revealed more than I wanted to."

 

Barry catches on quickly. "You are diverting the topic. You are the one who is devious. Why would you actually set him up on bad ones purposefully?"

 

Jesse's eyes dims a little. She pouts, "Why do you say 'on purpose'? They could have been accidents for all you know."

 

Barry looks at her as if she has an extra head suddenly. "Seriously? There's no way you would set him up on bad ones. You were being rebellious or you were doing it for a purpose, so what was it?"

 

It's not like Barry doesn't know when Jesse is hiding something or not either. He just takes a little more time to find out.

 

Jesse's smile becomes naughty once again. "Few times I was being rebellious. Others, I just wanted to know what he would do, sometimes I just wanted him to be free and have fun. But some did have a purpose. I thought he liked Tina McGee and I thought that he would go to her if he went on certain bad dates."

 

"So what happened?"

 

"Turns out he did not like Tina and Tina did not like him that way either, they were just together because they both knew my mom but later they drifted apart. I am glad I did not do lasting damage."

 

Jesse back pedals. "How did you know it was on purpose?"

 

This time Barry feels exasperated. "You are as protective of him as he is of you. You would never let him go on a date without knowing the complete profile of that person."

 

They both don't say anything.

 

**********

 

"Are you sure that my dad really didn't do anything bad for saving me?"

 

Barry tries to lighten the mood by joking. "Other than sacrifice me?" He also wants the tension to lessen and the topic to change but Jesse is having none of it.

 

"Stop doing that."

 

"Doing what?"

 

He knows that if Jesse could have it, she would probably strangle him, he is glad that he is separated from her by a glass wall.

 

"Being stubborn."

 

"You and Harry do it all the time."

 

"That's different."

 

"Is it really, Jesse?"

 

Jesse doesn't say anything for sometime. She starts again, "Please, Barry, I need to know."

 

"He hasn't, he wouldn't."

 

"Why not?"

 

"Because you would disapprove. Because he knows that he already has lost you and if he does a mistake again, you would not forgive him again. He wouldn't take that chance with you."

 

"Yet, you are here. How are you so sure? I wouldn't know now, would I, if he does something bad?"

 

"I know, Jesse. You know about me now, don't you? Yet you have forgiven him, right? He would never keep such stuff from you. You don't keep dark secrets from him either, do you? You are all he has left, you have friends and relatives but in the end, he is all you have left too, don't you?"

 

It has been only one day but they both have already become very good friends, their relationship is growing like a forest fire but in a controlled way. Barry doesn't know if it's because she is like and not like Harry at the same time but he knows that Jesse and he feels comfortable with each other. They don't have to pretend in front of each other.

 

This is such a short span of time and the circumstances are dire but somehow, something good has come out of it. If Zoom knows about this, he would definitely try to stop it.

 

Barry tries to deflect again. "Tell me, Jesse, if you were in his position, wouldn't you do the same for him?"

 

Jesse remains silent, he knows that she is thinking and he doesn't pry.

 

**********

 

Harry paces back and forth in the room. He has been working day and night for the past 6 days without more than two hours of sleep each day. Caitlin, Cisco, Iris, Joe have been helping too.

 

They don't like him but they work with him anyway because they are smart enough to know that he can help find Barry even though he is the fucking reason that Barry is missing anyway in the first place.

 

They have nearly perfected the algorithm for finding Zoom's whereabouts but it's still not good enough because Zoom's too fast to leave traces and that's the main reason they can't pin point or guess where his next location would be based on the past set of places and locations he has been to.

 

Harry doesn't know what Zoom's motive is now. He had clearly analyzed and thought of many situations but none of them fit now. He is sure that Barry hasn't regained his powers at all because if he had... by now either Barry would have escaped with Jesse or Zoom would have kidnapped Harry to extract Barry's powers... or the worst scenario - Barry could be dead.

 

But then again, Zoom wouldn't resist showing off how he had killed the city's scarlet speedster, their hope and last ray of sunshine, their hero.

 

So why was Zoom holding Barry captive still in this form?

 

That's when it hits him and that's when blue lightning crackles. It's all nothing but a sick power play to show them their positions, to warn them not to try anything stupid.

 

**********

 

Barry sighs, he cannot regain his powers at all. What's he going to do at this rate?

 

He looks at Jesse who is looking at him carefully. It looks like she wants to say something but suddenly Zoom appears in front of him and lifts him.

 

He hisses at Jesse, "Say goodbye to your dear friend."

 

And before Jesse or Barry can try to grasp the situation, Zoom disappears with Barry.

 

Jesse hits the glass again and again and shouts at Zoom but it all falls on deaf ears.

 

**********

 

Zoom has Barry in his hands and he throws Barry on the ground. Harry rushes to Barry and pulls him away. Immediately Cisco, Cait, Joe and Iris rush in. They had increased the security at S.T.A.R labs such that if a speedster appears in any one room, it will be conveyed to all the members without any further delay.

 

They all point their respective weapons at Zoom even though they know that it's completely, utterly useless. Harry feels pride swell in him. Even in this bull shit situation, Barry doesn't give up on others and others don't give up on Barry.

 

Zoom just laughs maniacally.

 

"You cannot defeat me. I just wanted to show you all how much power I have over you. Don't think you can defeat me or do anything funny because in the end, I can kill you all at the same time."

 

He comes near Harry and Joe and places his hands on their necks and doesn't stop when Cait, Iris, Cisco and Barry shoots at him. 

 

Harry chokes out, "I believe in you, Barry. Y-ou can do i-t wh-en no one else c-an. You are a s-peedster and a grea-t one."

 

Barry feels the lightning rush through him along with panic. He has to protect his family, his special people. He cannot let them die because of him. Already, he has lost a lot of people. This is ironic because the same person who had been kind of the reason for his lost powers is the same person to help him get his powers back.

 

Harry just believes in him because Barry has to save his daughter. Harry cannot love Barry yet Barry loves Harry and cannot stop and will do anything to protect Harry and Jesse like he protects Cait, Cisco, Joe and Iris and others. Barry doesn't know if he is unlucky or not.

 

He rushes towards Zoom just as Zoom drops Joe and Harry and disappears for now.

 

**********

 

Jesse cries at Zoom, "What have you done to him?!"

 

Zoom just smirks. "He is alive. You will see him soon and this time, I will have his speed."

 

**********

 

It's a bit difficult for them all to wrap their heads around the fact that it was not only a warning but a weird twisted way in which Zoom wanted Barry to gain his powers.

 

Cait, Iris, Joe and Cisco all rush towards Barry and hug him tightly.

 

Harry decides to leave and search for Jesse on his own as he had promised himself.

 

He feels four glares on him as he turns to walk away. Barry in a second rushes in front of Harry and holds his hand.

 

"Don't leave."

 

Joe growls, "What the hell is wrong with you, Bear? He nearly got you killed! Just let him go."

 

Barry sighs, "Nearly, Joe, nearly. I am alive, I have my powers back, don't I? He came here so that I can help find Jesse. I spoke with her, I was there with her for six days. She is his daughter. When Cisco gave up my identity to protect his brother, we all didn't judge him now, did we? If you do the same for Iris, I wouldn't be angry at all, we all would just help you."

 

"He is not Eobard, Joe. He is just Harry, Dr. Harrison Wells, we all have been thinking of him from the shadows of Eobard. This Harry is different. I want to help Jesse and I want you all to help me find Jesse because Jesse is his daughter, his only family. Do you hear me?"

 

Joe just grumbles to himself. Cait and Iris nod. Cisco is reluctant to agree but he too nods in the end.

 

Barry forces himself to smile, "Let us get back to our work, shall we?"

 

Cisco, Cait return to their stations. Iris and Joe leave for their jobs.

 

Barry turns to Harry. Harry beats him to it, "What did Jesse say?"

 

It stings him again, Barry has narrowly escaped death and all Harry can ask is about Jesse. He had long time ago accepted the fact that he cannot be in Harry's eyes, that Jesse will always be Harry's first priority. The thing is, why can't he be the second on Harry's list? What the fuck is he hoping for after everything that has happened? After time and time again Harry has proved that he does't love Barry. Harry cares for Barry for Jesse's sake, but more than that....?

 

Barry smiles again, "She spoke about you a lot."

 

"Don't smile."

 

Barry's smiles falters. 

 

Harry growls, "Don't smile when you don't feel like it. It's fake and all pretend and it's disgusting."

 

Barry just shrugs.

 

Harry looks down and for the first time looks ashamed of himself. "I am sorry."

 

Barry doesn't say anything, he doesn't have to.

 

"You have forgiven me but you are disappointed in me. You still trust me but you don't at the same time. Do you actually love me?"

 

Barry takes in a deep breath. It all depends on only one question. "Did you hesitate?"

 

Harry looks away from Barry. "Yes, I did. I won't justify my actions but for the first time, I felt insecure." This is what he wants to say but he lies, "No, I didn't."

 

He looks into Barry's eyes as Barry flinches. Both Harry and Barry know that Harry is lying. Barry knows that Harry's lying because he doesn't want Barry to love him.

 

"I don't love you anymore." This time it's Harry's turn to flinch. Barry wouldn't have even noticed if he had not been looking at Harry's face. Why the hell is he looking at Harry's face? Because Harry's face shows more and a different story than Harry's words and it's intentional, Barry realizes.

 

Harry doesn't call on the lie either. He walks away.

 

Barry finally whispers in a broken way at Harry's back. "Why didn't you ask me directly? I would have done it for you. Why did you have to trick me?"

 

He knows that Harry has heard it but there's no reply and he knows he will not get any either.

 

What's going to become of their relationship? Neither of them knows anymore for things have become more complicated than they already were.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I may write a sequel exploring Harry and Barry's relationship... but not now.  
> If you have any ideas, please do drop them :) Your views are always welcome.  
> Thank you for staying with me and reading. Hope you liked the story.  
> The ending is ambiguous for a reason.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading :)


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